Non-Sanctioned Wind Battle

I got up this morning at 5:40a, brushed my teeth, threw on my cycling kit, and jumped on the bike to ride to the Burger King and meet up with my Team McAllen group.  With regard to temperature, it was a beautiful day in the Rio Grande Valley.  It was about 65F when I left, and I finished the ride with the temperature still below 70F.  Unfortunately, we also had typical RGV winds -- 21 MPH from the SSE, gusting to 29 MPH (per Weather.com).  But since we don't have hills, I consider the wind to be the equivalent of a climbing route.  The ride would potentially be tougher than a normal Sunday, but that's part of the fun of cycling.

I rode the 15 miles to the Burger King, and arrived at 6:40a.  The parking lot was empty, even though the ride was scheduled to start at 7:00a.  A few other riders trickled in, and when the Major arrived, he told us that the Team McAllen officers had decided to cancel the ride because of potential safety issues when riding in strong wind.  Those of us that showed up were on our own without SAG, but that was no issue for us.  We pedaled out to do the normal Sunday route.

As you probably guessed, riding north was super duper easy.  And if you've never ridden into a 29 MPH gust, I'll say that...well...it was the opposite of super duper easy.  I ran out of gears when pulling into the wind.  It would move me around on the road if I didn't stay completely focused on my line.  It was impossible to talk to each other without screaming over the wind.  We couldn't hear cars approaching from the rear.  2 riders dropped out of the 7 man group.

Even with all of that seemingly negative wind effect, it was a GREAT ride.  Challenging, well-paced, and with good company.  I even had a flat about a mile from home, and that couldn't bring me down.

Here's a link to the ride details, and here's a summary image if you're not the clickety-click type: